Fish ‘Tacos’ with Easy Coriander Hot Sauce

I’m calling these ‘tacos’ because I’ve used lettuce leaves instead of tortillas. But don’t let that put you off.

If you’re using the lettuce leaves it’s a pretty light meal. So see the more substantial options below if you’re feeling hungry.

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Fish ‘Tacos’ with Easy Coriander Hot Sauce

Total Time 20 minutes minutes

Servings 2 people

Ingredients

• 1 bunch ground coriander cilantro
• 1-2 red chilli peppers
• 2 tablespoons lime juice
• 2 fish fillets each sliced into 3 long fingers
• 2 medium zucchini (courgette) grated
• 6 cos (romaine) lettuce or zucchini tortillas, to serve

Instructions

• For the sauce, chop coriander (cilantro) leaves and stems coarsely. Place in a tall jug or wide mouthed jar large enough to fit your stick blender. Add chilli, 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil and lime juice. Blitz using your stick blender until you have a pureed vibrant green sauce. If you don’t have a stick blender, use a food processor, regular blender of chop everything by hand.
• Heat a medium frying pan on a medium high heat. Season fish with a pinch of salt. Add a splash of oil to the pan and cook fish for 2-4 minutes on each side or until browned and cooked through.
• Fill 6 lettuce leaves or zucchini tortillas with the grated zucchini. Top with 1 piece of fish for each leaf / tortilla. Serve with hot sauce drizzled over.

WINE MATCH: A cold beer or glass of pinot gris.

Variations & Substitutions

pantry-friendly – use a commercial hot sauce. Serve with warmed corn tortillas.

taco bowls – serve shredded lettuce and grated zucchini in two bowls then top with hot fish and the green sauce.

short on time – use a commercial hot sauce instead.

vegetarian – fish = pan fried halloumi cheese, chickpeas, black beans, tempeh or fried eggs.

more substantial (carb lovers) – warm tortillas or flat bread.

more substantial (low carb) – serve with mayo, sour cream, avocado, peanuts, almonds or roast cashews. Using the zucchini tortillas makes it much more filling than the lettuce leaves.

family friendly – skip the chilli pepper.

different herbs – basil or parsley.

carnivore – pork fillet, pork sausages, steak, chicken thigh fillets are all lovely with the sauce.

no lime – use lemon juice.

crispy fish – dust fish with almond meal or another flour before pan frying.

Problem Solving Guide

bland – more lime. more chilli, more salt. a different hot sauce.

too dry – serve with mayo or an extra drizzle of oil.

too hot – next time use less chilli. For now diluting the hot sauce with extra oil or some greek yoghurt will help.

sticking to the pan – next time oil the fish more generously. A non stick pan or well seasoned pan will help. For now allow the pan to cool so the fish releases.

Waste Avoidance Strategy

coriander – best to use for another meal. Can be frozen but will wilt when defrosted.

red chillies – will keep for months in the fridge. Can be frozen or left unwrapped in the fridge they will slowly turn into dried chillies and still be edible.

lime – will keep in a plastic bag in the fridge for months.

fish fillets – freeze the fillets alone or you could make the fish cakes and freeze the mixture ready to defrost and cook.

zucchini – will keep for 2 weeks or longer in a plastic bag in the fridge. To keep it even longer, cook sliced zucchini in a little butter until just soft then store in an airtight container in the fridge.

lettuce – will keep in the fridge for a few weeks in a plastic bag. Otherwise use for another meal as it’s not great once frozen.

zucchini tortillas – freeze them.

Prepare Ahead

No. Everything is best when freshly made! Leftovers will keep in the fridge for up to a week. Don’t freeze.